Government unions profiting at the expense of others: California’s teacher tenure rules

Here’s a letter to the editor I sent to the Sacramento Bee in response to Teacher tenure debate ends with too little noise, August 23.

California’s teacher tenure rules — so harmful to students’ well-being that it “shocks the conscience” according to a Superior Court judge — is a truly shameful example of how government unions profit at the expense of others.

These terrible laws are the result of the special-interest effect: lawmakers serve those who can provide the most support to them — government unions like the California Teachers Association — over the public interest.

The basis for government unions rests on shaky ground as it is: the original labor movement was created to prevent the exploitation of workers by profit-hungry corporations. Because the government has no profits over which to negotiate, the case for unionization remains dubious. In California, elected officials are actually forced to sign union contracts.

Political self-interest guarantees that lawmakers serve special-interest groups. Instead of wishing this wasn’t so, Californians should ask themselves which is more important: government unions or their children?

Edited version of the above ran in today’s paper.